Video shows the rough baptism that went viral

A bishop came under fire on social media for carrying out a rather rough baptism.

A video of an Orthodox priest baptizing a child was posted online with many calling it the ‘most violent baptism ever.’

A bishop is seen dunking a boy in water repeatedly by swinging him by his arms. There are a few children nearby who back away as water splashes from the dunking.

Though it is performed in a similar way and is considered a tradition, many online have reacted with anger.

The video surfaced on May 8, 2018, and has garnered over 14 million views and about 5,700 comments so far. It has been retweeted more than 53,000 times.

The video starts with the bishop holding the baby in front of the baptismal font and then submerging the naked boy three times energetically.

He then hands the little one over to a man, who could be the boy’s father. The parents seem totally unfazed.

A user on Twitter, @meanveganhottie, said, ‘Omg that’s the most violent baptism?! I’ve ever seen?!’ Another user, @Miss_Patriciah, opined that the baby would be ‘traumatized for life.’

Mildred Tuhaise commented, ‘But this sort of baptism. Aaaah. It’s actually Roughism.’

However, there were a few who defending the priest’s actions in the video. Ana Mrt, tweeting through the handle @AnaMarti2000, said that it was an Orthodox baptism and all babies were baptized the same way.

The user added that he too went through it as a child and said that the baby ‘will not have any trauma.’

There were many others who pointed out that the actions by the priest were not unusual for a Greek Orthodox Church. A user told that it was not just water but also olive oil.

In January last year, a similar video emerged of a baby being baptized in a church in Georgia.